This year, Eggersmann Group GmbH & Co. KG is set to receive the Future Prize from the Zukunft Handwerk OWL Foundation. This year’s award ceremony will focus on “Craftsmanship Shapes Home.” The prize will be presented to two companies in the “Commitment to the Community” and “Future-Oriented Construction.” One of the two winners in the “Future-Oriented Construction” category is Eggersmann Gruppe GmbH & Co. KG. A delegation, led by Dr. Jens Prager, Chairman of the Board of the Foundation and General Manager of the Chamber of Crafts, visited the main site in Halle (Westphalia). Prager emphasized, “The Eggersmann Group has fortified its traditional construction division against crises by branching into new business areas. Additionally, a clear strategy for reducing CO2 is being followed.” Ragna Köstner, board member of the Stiftung Zukunft Handwerk OWL and deputy general manager of the OWL Chamber of Crafts, added, “The Eggersmann Group demonstrates how a construction company can future-proof itself through strategic expansion and establish a strong position in the circular economy’s value chain.” The company employs around 1,200 people across all construction, recycling, and composting sectors.
Originally founded in 1951 by Karl Fechtelkord, Fechtelkord and Eggersmann (F&E) began as a construction company focused on private, commercial, and agricultural projects. By 1975, F&E had adopted serial construction for farming projects, a method now extended to municipal buildings. “We provide project development, planning, execution, and operation from a single source when needed. We are increasingly collaborating with the private sector on public projects because this appeals to public bodies,” explains Thomas Hein, Managing Director of the Eggersmann Group. The tradition of serial construction has been advanced with the company’s precast plant in Halle, where BETONT, a group subsidiary, produces structurally reinforced green concrete precast elements and design components for modular construction.
In 1992, Eggersmann entered the composting sector by constructing its first composting plant in Gütersloh and founding the composting division KOMPOTEC. Before composting, biogas is extracted from the waste via dry fermentation and used to generate energy. Eggersmann is currently constructing such an energy plant in Nieheim. The recycling division emerged from the plant construction sector established in 2008. Through acquiring various companies, the group has since become a globally active full-service provider in recycling. Eggersmann now offers mobile and stationary recycling machines and dry fermentation processes. The company has also developed a procedure for producing substitute fuel called Eggersmann FUEL, often utilized in green concrete production.
The next significant goal is to capture the CO2 generated during fermentation and incorporate it into the green concrete elements produced at BETONT’s precast plant. This concrete will thus serve as a CO2 storage medium. “Unfortunately, the construction industry has a reputation for producing a lot of CO2. We aim for CO2 neutrality across our entire group and plan to offer green concrete. We want to demonstrate an alternative approach,” says Karlgünter Eggersmann, Managing Director. Eggersmann is also actively involved in voluntary work, serving as the president of the BAUVERBÄNDE NRW, head of the Gütersloh-Bielefeld construction guild, and a member of the general assembly of the OWL Chamber of Crafts.
Through its selection criteria, the Zukunft Handwerk OWL Foundation aims to highlight the vital role of craftsmanship in the region’s life. Craft businesses shape the economic landscape and uphold cultural and social values. In the “Commitment to the Community” category, the winners are Rotte Anlagenbau und Fördertechnik GmbH from Salzkotten and Mattern GmbH, a car dealership with twelve locations in East Westphalia-Lippe and headquarters in Bünde. In the “Future-Oriented Construction” category, Hecker System Holzbau GmbH & Co. KG from Marienmünster will be honored alongside Eggersmann GmbH & Co. KG from Marienfeld.
The official award ceremony is set to take place on September 17th at the Skylobby in the Gütersloh Theater, a venue where R&D completed the shell construction in 2008…LEARN MORE
